“Words” was the very first Low song I ever heard and it was like a shot across the bow. Which is ironic because the song, like so much of Low’s discography, is slow, subtle, and understated. But it completely changed my notions of what music can be.

Before Low, I had dismissed slow, repetitive music as boring and uninspired. But listening to Low undid any such foolish thinking. With their glacial rhythms, sparse guitar melodies, and of course, the unearthly harmonies of Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker (RIP) — in my opinion, no one ever harmonized better — Low’s music was certainly slow and repetitive, which also meant it was absolutely spellbinding.

Put simply, “Words” is the very ideal of a Low song: haunting, mysterious, beautiful, and timeless.